Arsenal’s pursuit of Leicester City’s Riyad Mahrez may take longer than first thought as the Gunners continue to baulk at meeting the Foxes valuation for the attacker.

Leicester has informed Arsenal that they would have to pay £50 million if they want to land Mahrez, but the Gunners believe that is an overvaluation.

Mahrez helped Leicester conquer England during the 2015/2016 season, but had an underwhelming campaign the following year as the Foxes almost got relegated from the Premier League, However, Arsene Wenger remains convinced the Algerian is still a classy player.

The playmaker is due back in for preseason by Friday despite handing in an official transfer request to leave.
Apparently, Mahrez is not Arsenal’s first choice transfer target, AS Monaco’s Thomas Lemar is, but with the Ligue 1 champions demanding £80 million for the sale of the French youngster, Wenger has turned his attention back to Mahrez.

The Gunners have secured the signing of top striker Alexandre Lacazette, but also want to secure the supply line for him to flourish. They remain keen on renewing the contracts of Mesut Ozil and Alexis Sanchez, but not much progress has been made.